1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electric wire supplying apparatus for supplying an electric wire from a nozzle to a working machine at the time of working of electric wire.
2. Description of the Related Art
For example, there is an electric wire working apparatus for conducting a peeling step for peeling a coating skin of a contact of a tip end of a long electric wire (electric cable) used for a wire harness (electric wire for automobile), a contact crimping step for connecting the peeled contact to another contact by crimping, a cutting step for cutting the electric wire into a predetermined length, a peeling step for peeling the coating skin of the other contact of the cut electric wire, and a contact crimping step for connecting the peeled other contact to another contact by crimping. In such an electric wire working apparatus, an electric wire supplying apparatus for supplying a tip end of the long electric wire by a predetermined length to a working machine that conducts the peeling step whenever each working is completed.
The present assignee previously proposed an electric wire supplying apparatus (see Japanese Patent Application No. H10-297291) (not prior art) as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. In FIGS. 1 and 2, a driving cylinder 3 is fixed to a tip end of a turning arm 1 through a connecting plate 2, and a fixing holder 4 is fixed to the driving cylinder 3. The fixing holder 4 comprises a holder body 5 having a recess 5a, and a lid 7 fixed to an upper portion of the holder body 5 through bolts 6 for covering an upper portion of the recess 5a. A tip end 9 of an electric wire transfer tube 8 and a base end 11 of a nozzle 10 are disposed in the recess 5a. The tip end 9 of the electric wire transfer tube 8 and the base end 11 of the nozzle 10 are pressed by the lid 7 and fixed.
As shown in FIG. 2, an electric wire W is transferred toward the nozzle 10 through an electric wire insertion passage 8a in the electric wire transfer tube 8, and the transferred electric wire is led out from a tip end opening 10b of the nozzle 10 through an electric wire passage 10a in the nozzle 10. The tip end 9 of the electric wire transfer tube 8 is provided with a notch 9a that is opened downward, and the holder body 5 is provided at its portion corresponding to the notch 9a with an opening 5b. An electric wire pressing portion 13 fixed to a piston rod 12 of the driving cylinder 3 is disposed in the opening 5b. The electric wire pressing portion 13 is driven by the driving cylinder 3 and moved into and out from the notch 9a, and the electric wire pressing portion 13 can move between a pressing position where the electric wire pressing portion 13 presses the electric wire W of the electric wire insertion passage 8a and a standby position where the electric wire W of the electric wire insertion passage 8a is allowed to be transferred.
In the above structure, if the electric wire W inserted into the electric wire insertion passage 8a of the electric wire transfer tube 8 is moved in an electric wire sending-out direction, a tip end of the electric wire W is guided by the electric wire insertion passage 8a and transferred toward the nozzle 10. When the tip end of the electric wire W comes out from the electric wire transfer tube 8, the tip end enters into the electric wire passage 10a of the nozzle 10, and the tip end in the electric wire transfer tube 8 is guided therein and led out from the tip end opening 10b. When the tip end is led out from the tip end opening 10b by a predetermined length, the sending-out operation is stopped, thereby bringing the electric wire W into a state in which the electric wire W is to be pulled out by a predetermined length by the nozzle 10. Various working machines are disposed at predetermined rotation positions where the turning arm 1 is turned and at positions in the vicinity of and opposed to the nozzle 10, and the tip end of the electric wire W led out from the tip end of the nozzle 10 is worked by the various working machines. When the tip end is worked, the electric wire pressing portion 13 is moved to the pressing position to clamp the electric wire W, and when a predetermined working is completed, the tip end of the electric wire W is cut into a predetermined length. This cut tip end portion of the electric wire W is sent to a subsequent step, the electric wire pressing portion 13 is moved to the standby position to release the clamping motion, the tip end of the electric wire W of the electric wire transfer tube 8 is sent through a predetermined length, the electric wire W is pulled out through a predetermined length from the nozzle 10, and the above operations are repeated. That is, the electric wire supplying apparatus supplies a tip end of the long electric wire W from the tip end of the nozzle 10 sequentially whenever a predetermined working of the tip end of the electric wire W is completed.
When various electric wires are replaced due to color change of the electric wire W or when electric wire W run out and is re-supplied, it is necessary to send a new electric wire W from the base end of the electric wire transfer tube 8 to the nozzle 10.
However, in the conventional electric wire supplying apparatus, since the tip end portion of the electric wire transfer tube 8 is provided with the notch 9a and the opening 5b opened therein, if the tip end portion of the electric wire W is bent or suspended down, the tip end abuts against an inner surface of the opening 5b of the fixing holder 4 as shown in FIG. 2, and there is an adverse possibility that the electric wire W can not reliably be sent toward the nozzle 10.
The present invention has been accomplished to solve the above problems, and it is an object of the invention to provide an electric wire supplying apparatus capable of reliably sending a new electric wire from an electric wire transfer tube toward a nozzle.
According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided an electric wire supplying apparatus comprising a electric wire transfer tube for guiding an electric wire inserted into an electric wire insertion passage in the electric wire transfer tube into an electric wire sending-out direction and provided at its tip end with a notch, a nozzle disposed on a tip end of the electric wire transfer tube for guiding the electric wire sent out from the electric wire insertion passage out from a tip end opening through an electric wire passage in the nozzle transfer tube fixing holder for fixing a tip end of the electric wire transfer tube and having an opening opened in the notch of the electric wire transfer tube and electric wire pressing means having an electric wire pressing portion that can move from the opening into and out from the notch and moving the electric wire pressing portion between a pressing position for pressing the electric wire of the electric wire insertion passage and a standby position for sending the wee of the electric wire insertion passage, wherein the nozzle is provided at its portion closer to the electric wire transfer tube with a projecting portion for substantially complementing a shape of the notch when the projecting portion is butted to a tip end of the electric wire transfer tube and the nozzle can move between a close position where the projecting portion is brought into close contact with the notch of the electric wire transfer tube and butted to the notch to close the opening, and an open position where the projecting portion is separated from the notch of the electric wire transfer tube to open the opening.
According to this electric wire supplying apparatus, when a new electric wire is allowed to pass to the nozzle for changing quality, size or color of the electric wire, the nozzle is brought into the close position, and the electric wire inserted into the electric wire transfer tube is transferred into the electric wire sending-out direction. If the tip end of the electric wire reached the notch of the electric wire transfer tube, since the notch butts to the projecting portion of the nozzle and the opening of the transfer tube fixing holder is closed, the electric wire is guided to the electric wire passage of the nozzle even if a tip end of the electric wire is bent or suspended downward. After the inserting operation of the new electric wire is completed, the nozzle is moved to the open position so that the electric wire pressing portion can retreat into the notch a, and the electric wire pressing portion can freely clamp the electric wire and release the clamp.
According to a second aspect of the invention, in the electric wire supplying apparatus of the first aspect, the nozzle is moved between the close position and the open position by a driving force of nozzle driving means.
With this electric wire supplying apparatus, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, since the nozzle is moved between the close position and the open position by a driving force of nozzle driving means, the nozzle can automatically be moved, and the electric wire can be automatically sent.
According to a third aspect of the invention, in the electric wire supplying apparatus of the first aspect, the nozzle is supported by a connection rod that is moved while being guided by the transfer tube fixing holder and by a nozzle support holder fixed to the connection rod.
With this electric wire supplying apparatus, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, since the nozzle is supported by the transfer tube fixing holder through the connection rods and the nozzle support holder in such a manner that the nozzle is movable. Therefore, it is possible to stably position the nozzle with respect to the electric wire transfer tube and to stably move the nozzle.
According to a fourth aspect of the invention, in the electric wire supplying apparatus of the first aspect, the projecting portion has a shape which completely complements and coincides with the shape of the notch when the projecting portion is butted to the tip end of the electric wire transfer tube.
With this electric wire supplying apparatus, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, a tip end of a new electric wire can smoothly pass through a connected portion between the electric wire transfer tube and the nozzle.